


Puppets

by NeysaG



Category: Dragon Age II
Genre: Alternate Reality, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-25
Updated: 2014-07-03
Packaged: 2018-02-06 03:59:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1843531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NeysaG/pseuds/NeysaG
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Anders awakes to find himself in the fade and at the mercy of the Puppeteer.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hawke

**Author's Note:**

> Got the idea from a facebook game of all things. I have a vague notion of where I want to go with it but not sure if I will finish it.

Anders opens his eyes. His head is pounding like after a good party. He barely recovers his legs putting his hands in his pocket habitually and finds a crumpled piece of paper there.

Hello Anders,

My name is the Puppeteer and I want to play a game with you. You are locked in a house  
with many rooms, in each of them a test is waiting for you. They'll bring you closer to freedom,  
but you'll have to risk your life to pass them. Now you are staying in the only safe room of the  
house; yours. There are 5 puppets in this room.Try to find them.

 

“Makers balls. What is going on.” Anders glances around the room. Everything is slightly out of focus. “Ah I’m in the fade. Ok now how did I get here? And where is Justice? And who is this Puppeteer?” Anders cast a bit of healing magic into his head. With the pounding now gone perhaps he could get to the bottom of things. A very confused Anders proceeded to search the small room he was in. It was modestly furnished though everything was in disarray and broken. It seemed familiar but he couldn't put his finger on why. Ignoring the feeling he kept on searching. Soon enough he found one of the puppets underneath the broken bed. "Huh... It kind of looks like Hawke." Anders continued the search and pretty soon he had all 5 puppets. All the puppets were made of wood and were dressed and painted to resemble his friends, Hawke, Varric, Isabela, Fenris, and Merrill. Well he wasn't really friends with Fenris or Merrill but he could definitely see the resemblance. Especially Fenris's markings. They were even carved into the wood and not painted on. Anders could feel a small tug on his mana. The markings were real lyrium.

"I wonder what these puppets have to do with anything. Maybe I should stop talking to myself and explore the rest of this house." Anders chuckled to himself and placed the puppets into a sack he found on the floor during his search. He didn't know if he should bring them along but had a feeling he should. He then proceeded out the door of 'his' room. Stepping out onto the landing Anders had a look around. It looked a lot like Fenris's mansion. Why on Thedas is he in Fenris's mansion? Complete with cobwebs and broken floor tiles. At least it would be easy for him to navigate. He proceeded to the next room, which if this was Fenris' home would be Fenris' room. With his hand on the door handle Anders stopped. "Even in the fade I don't feel comfortable entering Fenris's room without his permission." Anders chuckled. "Well no reason why I can't just save this room for last, or not at all." Anders turned away from that door and went to the room at the end of the hall instead. The door swung open easily and Anders stepped inside.

This room was similar to the room he had just left though a bit more ramshackle. They both had two beds and some tables, dresser and chairs. But this one had a rug and some shelving. Anders wasn't seeing any tests in this room and was about to leave when he noticed one of the shelves looked almost new. Or at least clean. Everything had a coating of dust except this one shelf. On the shelf was a mabari doll on one side and a tiny shield on the other. Oh the shield has Hawke's crest on it. Ok so now what? Anders thought about it a moment then brought out the Hawke puppet and placed it on the shelf between the two other items. Suddenly the whole room tilted and spun. Anders lost his balance and barely managed to catch himself on a nearby chair. Laid out on one of the two beds in the room was Hawke. His mabari, Rawrsauce, was standing guard at the foot of the bed. "HAWKE!" Anders screamed and tried to get close but there seemed to be a shield surrounding the two. "Ok think Anders. Think!" Quickly scanning the room for any other changes or clues to what he needed Anders noticed piece of paper on the table.

Anders picked up the paper and read it. It contained questions all about Hawke and his family. "Maker's balls. It's an actual test. This was not what I was expecting," Anders said with a groan. "I hate tests. And how am I suppose to fill this out. There is no quill or ink." He glanced once again around the room but there was no writing instruments to be found. Anders was considering his next move when something caught his eye. He glanced at the shield surrounding Hawke and the dog. Was it shrinking? Yes! So it's a timed test too. Anders didn't know what to do but he had to think of something quickly. "Alright, first question... What is Hawkes first name? Really?" Anders hoped all the questions were this easy. "Well if I can't write it down maybe its verbal. First answer is Garrett." With that statement a crack appeared on the shield. But it was still slowly shrinking around the occupants. Well at least Anders knew what he had to do. He hurried to read the next few questions. More and more cracks appeared onto the shield until Anders got to one he didn't know the answer to. And such an easy question to. "How old is Hawke? Dammit," Anders cursed under his breath.  _I don't know that. I don't even know when his birthday is. Some friend I turned out to be. Ok think._ "umm 26....OW!" Instead of a fissure on the shield a cut appeared on Anders arm. "Andraste's knickers that hurt." Anders drew his finger across the cut healing it as he went. And when he stopped it just reopened again. So he healed again just to have it reopen. Now Anders understood the part about risking his life. A whimper from Rawrsauce brought his attention back to the test in his hand. He would have to be more careful but he still needed to hurry. "What is Hawke's favorite color? HA Red. Everyone knows that. Hawke's fathers name? Malcolm." That trip with Hawke to the Grey Warden Prison was useful after all. At the last question of the test Anders had 3 more cuts on his arm but a lot more cracks to the slowly shrinking shield. He was feeling good about this. Blood loss wasn't to bad but he did have to sit down feeling a little weak. "Last one, True or False Hawke has uttered the phrase The queasy crow flies at midnight," Anders chuckled. He couldn't help it. "At least twice in my hearing alone. Probably more knowing Hawke." A loud blast sounded in the room. The Shield had exploded and would have knocked Anders down if he had been standing.

From the bed Hawke groaned when Rawrsauce pounced onto the bed licking his face. "Down boy down." Hawke sat up and looked around the room. His eyes fell to Anders. "What is going on? Where am I?"

Anders sighed, "Help me to the my room and I will explain what I know."

"Your room?"

"It's the only place I am safe. At least that's what the letter said. And I need to be able to heal."

Anders grunted as Hawke helped him from the room. The dog close on their heels. After depositing Anders on one of the two beds Hawke sat on the other and waited for Anders to heal himself. Anders then handed Hawke the letter he had found earlier and explained all that has happened so far. He even pulled out the remaining puppets to show him. "So you have to pass some test to save us, and then... what?" Hawke inquired of Anders when he had stopped speaking.

"I don't know Hawke. You were the first person I found." Anders packed up the puppets again and stood. "But with your help this should go a lot faster. And the sooner we get out of here the better."

Both men walked to the door of Anders room and stepped through. Except Hawke was pushed back from the door. He stared at Anders on the other side and tried to leave again only to once more be pushed back inside. Anders tried to find some spell or rune or anything that would explain why Hawke couldn't leave the room but turned up nothing. Unbelievable, it would seem Anders was meant to do this alone. He was really really starting to hate this Puppeteer.  "Ok wait here and I will go get more of our friends. Maybe they will be able to help."

With a chuckle Hawke inquired, "And just where do you think I am going to go?"

Anders just shook his head and turned away. Again he quickly considered going into Fenris's room and just as quickly dismissed it. He would check downstairs first.


	2. Merrill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anders finds Merrill

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated with a bit more conversation between Merrill and Hawke. I felt her chapter was a bit short and added a little more plot to it instead of at the beginning of the next chapter.

After heading down the stairs to the main entrance Anders stopped and considered where to look first. He wasn't sure which rooms were which. He avoided spending time in Fenris' mansion. They didn't get along and he certainly wasn't welcome here. That used to be true anyway. He and Fenris had been getting along more recently. They weren't friends, they were... well Anders didn't know what they were. Just not enemies. Ever since...this is not the time to think about that. Anders shook himself and turned to his left. He would start in the kitchen and work his way through the servant areas. The kitchen was, well it wasn't clean. But it was cleaner than he expected. He noticed the food prep area and one of the cupboards looked like it was used regularly. The rest looked like it had been wiped down but not scrubbed. Like some one had attempted to clean and then gave up. What Anders noticed the most was the lack of dead bodies that seemed be the norm for the rest of the house. Actually now that he thought about it there weren't any bodies in either of the first two rooms he had visited either. Was Fenris actually cleaning his home or was it like this only in the fade? Not seeing anybody else Anders decided those questions were for another time and continued on.

He went farther back into the house through was looked like the servant hall and stepped into the next room. As soon as he left the door way a barrier appeared behind him and across the way in the only other exit. Test number two it would seem. Now to figure out who was suppose to be here. The room seemed to be a gathering area. Perhaps for the servants. There were some over turned tables and chairs. Servants certainly were allowed to eat with their employers so maybe this is where they ate. There was a fire going on the far wall. Anders wandered over to it and looked at the mantle. Just like the shelf in the room with Hawke the mantle was devoid of dust. The only item on the mantle was a small mirror. An Eluvian to be exact. He had only ever seen the one in Merrill's house. At least he knew which puppet he had to use but he had a feeling he wasn't going to be tested with question and answers this time. Please don't be a demon, please don't be a demon, Anders chanted in his head as he grabbed the Merrill puppet from his bag and carefully placed it on the mantle.

Again the room shimmered and spun and once it stopped Anders slowly turned around to find Merrill knelt in front of the Eluvian. Merrill sat unmoving just as Hawke had originally been but there was no shield this time. "Merrill?" Anders called. No response from her. That would have been to easy. Standing up straighter he walked over to her and started examining the mirror. Anders walked around it a few times before stopping behind Merrill and looked into the mirror. At first it showed nothing. Not even their reflections. Then slowly a demon appeared in the mirror. A demon that would be standing slightly to Anders side. "I must really learn to keep my mouth shut," Anders groaned to himself as he twirled raising his staff to block a blow from the demon now in the room. Amazed that his staff was in hand when he previously had nothing Anders was momentarily distracted from the fight and the demon managed a blow across his arm. Anders hissed and jumped out of range of the next attack. Anders quickly attempted to heal himself but once again that part of his magic was blocked from his use. He could still however cast his offensive spells he found out as he cast lighting at the demon.

The demon charged at him with claws upheld, going for Anders chest. Anders dodged the first and met the second with his staff. The force of the attack sent Anders back, …but not far enough to knock the staff free of his hands. A stonefist shot at the demon pushed it back away from Anders. Anders took the chance to get further away. He couldn't stand a direct hit especially without being able to heal himself. The demon seemed to lose interest in him and head toward an unmoving Merrill. Quickly Anders brought a barrier around the elf and struck the demon with another stonefist. This brought the focus back to him. Round and round the mirror Anders moved always keeping the demon on the opposite side so it wouldn't be able to charge. Keeping the barrier on Merrill was taking its toll on him but he couldn't risk dropping it. Coming around another time Anders tripped over a broken tile. The demon hurried farther around the mirror and charged. Anders lost hold of his staff and quickly rolled to the side and out of the path. Casting without his staff was always tricky but being this close to the demon he had little choice in the matter. Summoning a large amount of mana he struck out with a fireball. It struck the demon who shuddered and fell at Anders feet. Breathing was hard but he forced himself to crawl over to Merrill who had collapsed with the death of the demon. She was alive but bleeding from the few strikes she took during his fight. Anders knew he couldn't heal her here so he picked her up and carried her up stairs.

Hawke had heard the fighting below but seeing as he stuck in the room the best he could do was watch from the doorway. He grew worried with silence fell a while later. He prayed to the Maker, Andraste, The Creators, or anyone who would listen to him. Please let Anders be ok. Please let him have survived. Hawke released the breathe he hadn't realized he was holding when he saw Anders on the stairs carrying Merrill.

"Don't bring her...." Hawke started. But it was to late Anders stepped over the threshold and laid Merrill onto the bed.

"I have no choice Hawke. I can't heal out there and we both took a beating in that fight."

"What happened?"

"The usual demon infestation. It is Tuesday." Anders begin telling Hawke of the whole incident while healing both him and the elf. Halfway through Merrill woke up and looked at both Hawke and Anders. "Hello," she chirped all to much cheerfully, a big smile on her face. "What's going on?"

Anders stood up and stretched. "Hawke will explain. I need to get some rest before looking for anyone else." And with that Anders laid down on the other bed and promptly fell asleep. Hawke smiled at Merrill. "Well it all started with..." 

At the end of the story Merrill took her time wandering around the small room touching things here and there. After a few moments she sat back down closing her eyes. "If we were only asleep I should have been able to wake up. But since I can't something or some one must be keeping us here." Merrill opened her eyes looking toward Hawke. "Do you think some one found us as we were trying to remove..." 

"Shhhhhh Merrill! He doesn't know and I don't know that we should tell him that right now." Hawke quickly shushed the small elf and glanced at Anders. Seeing that he was still fast asleep Hawke rested back into his chair.

"You don't think telling Anders would help?" Merrill was confused. In any other situation like this Anders would be the first one they would have gone to for help.

  
"I don't think he needs to be focused on being mad at us since he is the only one who can move freely around this place."

  
"I suppose Hawke but I think he will have to be told soon."

"Ya I know. But what I don't understand is how you got here. You were suppose to be with Aveline and Sebastian."

"Oh," Merrill sat up straighter. "I don't know. The last thing I remember is preforming the ritual to get you all in here. Until Anders saved me of course. I hope Aveline and Sebastian are alright."

"So not only will we probably have to fight Vengeance but some unknown person as well. I just hope Anders won't run into either of them before we can get out of this room." Hawke sighed and turned to watch Anders sleep. They only wanted to help him. Justice had been getting out of hand lately. If that incident with the mage girl was anything to go by. When Hawke went to check on Anders afterwards he was surprised to find that Fenris had gotten there before him. Even more surprised that they were not trying to kill each other but were actually talking. He left quickly and quietly hoping not to disturb the peace. He wondered how long that had been going on but he wasn't about to interrupt to find out. Instead he went to the Hanged Man. This was something Varric needed to know. 

When Hawke secretly contacted the Wardens he hadn't expected a response from the Hero of Ferelden and he certainly hadn't expected the information about a ritual that could remove Justice from Anders. Maybe he shouldn't have declined their help with this but tricking Anders had been hard enough without having to explain why the Wardens where in Kirkwall all of a sudden. Hawke just hoped Anders would forgive him when this was all over.

A faint hum sounded in the room and the smell of bread caught both Hawke's and Merrill's attention. Both turned to the table near the door and noticed food and water laid out. Hawke didn't know where it came from but he wasn't going to complain. He was starving.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fight scenes are hard


	3. Isabela

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More plot and Isabela is saved.

After a few hours of sleep Anders awoke to the quiet talking of his friends and the smell of food. Anders stood up from the bed and stretched. Knees and back popping. His body still worn from the fight for Merrill. “Where did the food come from?” Anders queried as he came to sit at the table with Hawke.

“We weren’t really paying attention and next thing we know the room smelled of fresh bread. When we turned to look the empty table was full.” Hawke explained around a mouth full of cheese.  
“Well I’m not going to complain. I will need it before I venture out again. Are you two still stuck in the room?” Anders started filling his plate with the cheese and bread. Pouring himself a glass of water from the pitcher as well. Merrill had stood and attempted to leave the room only to be barred. “It would seem so Anders. Which of our friends are left to be found?” Merrill asked as she returned to the spot on the floor she had been sitting.

Anders answered around a bit of food. Maker was he hungry. “Varric, Isabela, and Fenris are left. As seems to be very much like Fenris’s home I would wager a guess that he is in his room. But where the other two are I will just have to wander around til I find them as I did you two.”

Hawke stared at Anders with his head cocked slightly to the side. “Why didn’t you look there first? Maybe Broody would have some idea as to what is going on? If it is his mansion.” Anders didn’t want to think about his reason why. The Elf confused the crap out of him. And scared him a little to. Anders wasn’t afraid to admit. At least to himself. It wasn’t that he wasn’t glad that he and Fenris have been getting along better. He was tired of all the fighting they had done in the past. He just wasn’t sure were they stood now. He doesn’t know if they were friends even though he knows they aren’t enemies any more. Lost in thought Anders forgot all about Hawke’s question. Until Hawke cleared his throat.

“Ahem. Anders….”

Startled Anders jumped a little in his chair, “What?”

“Why don’t you look for Fenris next?”

“Uh ya ok sure. Sounds like a plan.” Anders turned his head away so that the other two wouldn’t see him blush and finished up his food. Standing and wiping crumbs from his jacket he turned to leave.  
“Don’t forget the puppets, “Merrill called to him.

“Thanks.” Anders stepped once more onto the landing and strode the short distance to Fenris’s room. And stopped. Steeling himself he knocked. Then laughed at his stupidity. It’s not like the prickly elf would just open the door for him. He had to place the puppet some where first. One more deep breath and Anders entered the room. The room was just as he remembered it from the last time he was here. Memories of that night assaulted Anders no matter how hard he tried to not remember them right now. He had paid Fenris a visit late one night after a particularly hard day in the clinic. Why he went to Fenris and not Hawke he was still wasn’t sure. He had been positive that he would end up being tossed out onto his rear in the street if he was lucky enough not to have his heart ripped out. He never expected to be invited in. He never expected to have a civilized conversation with the mage hating elf. He never expect to have been allowed to sleep in the chair in front of the fire. Not the most comfortable but he was warm and tired. Dozing off when he had meant to get up, thank the Elf for his hospitality, and then head back to the clinic. Before he said something stupid and Fenris decided he didn't want to be nice to the mage anymore and removed his heart for him. Forcing himself into action he started surveying the shelves and mantles. When that turned up nothing he started on the table and dresser tops. Nothing. No suspiciously clean spots or random objects that looked out of place. huh if Fenris isn’t in here where would he be?

Back on the landing he saw Hawke and Merrill waiting in the doorway. When he came into view Hawke raised an eyebrow in question. Turning to them Anders explained “He isn’t in there. I’m going to head back downstairs. Maybe he is in the bathing chamber." Anders face flushed. "Or maybe I will run into one of the other two.” Anders didn’t wait for a response, just turned away and headed off. The thought of Fenris in the bath was a bit much for him and didn’t want the other two to see Anders blush at his own words. Stop it Anders. You have friends to save. Again Anders forced clear his thoughts and got back to work.

Checking out the left side of the house again produced no results. So that would mean the other three were somewhere on the right side. Maybe he would get lucky and find all three in one spot. But then knowing his luck he would have to pass a written test while fighting spider while dancing the Remigold all at the same time. So maybe one at a time was better.

The hallway showed nothing of interest so Anders went into what he thought was the main dining hall. There was one table at the head of the room. More tables broken and turned over littered the rest of the room. There were two chairs at the table located in the middle on either side facing each other. With the broken furniture and pictures laying on the floor he found this odd. He bet anything one of his friends was located in this room. And sure enough on a shelf directly behind the table he found what he was looking for. A long dagger lay on the shelf. While daggers are used by rogues and two of the remain three friends were rogues it was still a safe bet that this was Isabela as he had never seen Varric use any weapon besides Bianca. Bianca would probably have gotten jealous if he had. So Anders placed one hand on the wall for support and set the Isabela puppet on the shelf. He knew the swaying of the room was coming might as well be prepared this time.

Turning around he found the buxom pirate sitting in one of the chairs but now there were also two small cups and a bottle of booze on the table. Is this some sort of drinking contest? He knew he could hold his liquor well enough when he was back with the Wardens. Drinking with Ogren prepared you for this kind of thing. But ever since Justice he hadn’t been allowed to get drunk and he wasn’t sure he wouldn’t pass out after one drink. And then there is the thing about being able to get hurt when he wasn’t in his room. So what. poison to drink then? And how can it be a contest if Isabela can’t participate? Knowing he wasn’t going to get any answers from the still room he sat down in the chair across from the captain.

Isabela movements were stiff but she was moving. Anders stared as she reached for the bottle and poured it into both cups. Setting the bottle down she took up the cup and drank it down. Anders didn't move. He was curious if she was going to do anything else. She remained still, unblinking and staring past Anders shoulder. Nothing seemed to be happening. It was then Anders noticed something odd about the pirates clothes. Her corset seemed a bit looser than she would normally wear it. Anders stood up and came around the table for a closer look. Crap this wasn't good. On the inside of her corset were tiny pins that were pressing into her skin. He wasn't sure but he thought the corset was slowly constricting and while the pins didn't seem to have pierced her skin yet but they were about to. Leaning over the table Anders grabbed his cup and downed the liquid. It burned on the way down. Checking Isabela again showed that the corset sat dormant now. Well now he knows what happens if he doesn't drink. But whats going to happen to him if he does?

Anders returned to his seat and set his glass back on the table. So far the liquid seemed to be some sort of whiskey. It burned going down but nothing seemed amiss. Isabela moved to fill their glasses again. And quicker than he wished he found himself buzzed. It would have been nice if not for the circumstances. The bottle seemed to never empty. Every time he drank his glass was refilled. Anders started to lean on the table and his eyes wanted desperately to close. Forcing himself back up he squinted at Isabela. Were her eyes started to close? He wasn't sure if he was seeing correctly. He hoped that was the case. Anders had no clue how much longer he could keep this up. Reminding himself why he had to stay upright, why he couldn't sleep was getting harder and harder. He couldn't lose this. If he passed out then Isabela would be stabbed by thousands of pins. While not enough to kill her outright she would slowly bleed out and there would be nothing Anders could do about it.

Man he wished Fenris was here... that thought brought Anders off the table. Shit how long had he been laying down. He quickly, well as quick as a drunk man could, grabbed his cup and drank. He wasn't sure why the thought of Fenris being near started being a comforting thought but he was glad of it. Because as he swayed he watched Isabela's eyes close and her head slumped. Fenris saved him again. Anders chuckled. Anders stood as best he could. Leaning heavily on the table he circled around to Isabella. He had to get her corset off. He could practically hear her leering at him in his head. It was a struggle, he was very drunk and very tired but eventually the corset fell to the ground. Anders wasn't prepared for Isabella to fall forward so they both went crashing into the table. They both lay slumped on the table. Anders had to get her upstairs. Grabbing the pirate around the waste he lifted them both and stood. Swaying under her weight Anders stumbled backwards into the wall barely managing to keep them upright. Once the room stopped spinning Anders began dragging her from the room. And it was dragging because there was no way he had enough strength to pick her up.

Hawke was worried. There had been no sounds from the house and no sight of Anders in a while. After throwing himself at the barrier in the doorway a few times to no avail he took to pacing instead. From the door to the beds and back again. Stopping to look out of the room each time. Merrill was worried too but she stayed seated so as not to get in Hawke's way. A loud thump and some giggling echoed from the landing outside and the occupants of the room rushed over to the door. There wasn't much to see but the giggling turned into cursing. What was going on out there? Thump! Andraste's crotch rot... thump.... Andraste's Knickerweasels....thump....Maker's bloody balls! With that last curse Anders appeared at the top of the stairs dragging an unconscious Isabella. As they reached the top Anders lost his balance and fell onto his back with Isabela landing on top of him. Hawke watched as Anders was over come by giggles. "Anders?! Are you drunk?" Hawke couldn't believe it. He had never seen him drunk before. At the sound of Hawkes voice Anders tilted his head back and looked at his friends. "Hehehe... Nooooo I'm fine. But why are you upside down?" Anders returned to his giggling fit. Looking over Isabela Hawke noticed the small bleeding holes along her back. "Anders perhaps you should bring Isabela in here." Anders had quieted down, eyes closed, breathe slowly down. "ANDERS!" Hawke bellowed. Anders bolted awake. "Maker alright I'm coming. Can't a mage rest a moment?" With that Anders struggled out from underneath the pirate, she was heavier than she looked or maybe he was just drunker than he thought, and resumed dragging her across the floor. The pinpricks never stopped bleeding and a trail of blood was left in their wake.

As soon as Anders backed up enough through the doorway Hawke grabbed Anders coat and helped pull him until Isabela's arms were through and Merrill could grab hold. Hawke let go of Anders and he stumbled toward the bed but fell at its feet instead of on it. Snoring could be heard and he was left to sleep as the other two took care of Isabela's wounds. Luckily for them all Hawke had a healing potion on him. She was unable to drink the potion so it was drizzled over both sides of her. Thankfully the wounds weren't to bad and they closed quickly. She was then lifted and placed on one of the two beds. Hawke then bent down and scooped up Anders placing him on the other. Guess their questions will have to wait.

Rawrsauce, who had been sleeping quietly in the corner until now, got up and posted himself before the door. He growled low but didn't move even when Hawke called to him. Merrill was closest to the door but didn't see anything amiss. "I don't know what he is seeing Hawke. I don't see anything."  As she started to turn away a figure appeared at the middle of the landing. Merrill gasped and Hawke hurried to her side pushing her slightly behind him. Rawrsauce started barking at the man but he just watched them. Glaring silently for a moment before fading out again. Hawke pushed Merrill back farther into the room and silenced the dog. He had a feeling they just met the Puppeteer but there was nothing to do but wait until the other two awoke.


	4. Varric

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varric is found and Anders gets pissed

Anders woke to an elephant stampede in his head, a dry mouth, and a rolling stomach. He cracked his eyes to see where he was. Which was a stupid thing to do he found out when the elephants were accompanied by stinging needles in his eyes. Very slowly he raised his hand to his head and released a bit of healing magic, sighing as it soothed the worst of his pain. Now that he could think a bit more clearly he noticed the low voices of his friends and snores of the dog. For a moment he forgot where he was but the sickly green hue to the room reminded him exactly where he was. However badly he wished to roll over and go back to sleep he knew he had to continue. He still had two more people to find.

Anders gingerly sat up and the room fell silent as he made his way to the table and drank heavily from the pitcher of water. He healed himself some more and started to pick at the food. He wasn’t fully sober yet but it would have to do. Turning back to the room he asked if Isabella had been caught up as to what was going on then checked her over for any more injuries. Satisfied that she was alright he returned to his meal.

“We think we saw the puppeteer after you passed out.” Hawke told Anders of the strange man on the landing.

“He has to be a mage but I wonder if he is a dreamer. It would be weird to meet another dreamer after Feynriel. Most dreamers are too frail to survive possession so they are rare. But to hold this shape,” Anders waved a hand to indicate the house, “and to keep so many of us all here would be very difficult to do.”

“You don’t think that was Feynriel do you?” Merrill looked disgusted at the thought. Whether it was because he was a fellow elf or because Hawke had helped him was unclear. “He didn’t look like an elf though. It was hard to see his ears because of the hood though. But then he was kind of tall for an elf. But then Fenris is tall for an Elf too.”

Hawke interrupted her rambling, “If we could get back on track,” Turning to Anders he continued speaking “Merrill has been trying to magic our way out of this room and we will continue while you find Varric and Fenris. We haven’t had much luck but it’s better than doing nothing.”

Anders agreed and headed back to the main hall. He wasn't sure who he hoped to find first. Being in this house caused him to think about his recent dealings with Fenris and he was excited to see him again. But at the same time he was scared that everything that had happened between them was a dream and when he saw him next they would be back to fighting and harsh words. Anders didn't look closely as to why that bothered him so much.

When Fenris came to him after the incident with the mage girl Ella he thought Fenris had come to gloat so he was unprepared for the comfort he received instead.

_Anders was on his clinic floor sorting through a pile of his stuff “Keep, keep, trash, keep” and didn’t hear the knocking at his door. He didn’t realize anyone had entered until he heard a familiar baritone behind him._

_“You are leaving.”  
_

_It was Fenris; Anders wasn’t in the mood to deal with him._ _“What do you want Elf? Have you come to gloat, to rub it in that am not in control like I said I was? Shouldn’t you be at the Hanged Man celebrating?” The more Anders talked the more he couldn’t control his words. “Or perhaps you just come to kill me. You have your proof that I am not in control. Proof that I am a monster just like you said.” At this Anders stood and got in Fenris’ space. His voice rose and he was now yelling. “Go ahead just get it over with. You know you want to. Tell Hawke I attacked first I'm sure he would believe you. Go on do it!”_

_“No.”_

_The firm but quiet word drained the fight out of Anders. The simple reply stopping him in his tracks. Anders eyes dropped to the floor. He couldn't look at Fenris anymore. He didn't want to see the hate that had to be there in Fenris' eyes. He didn’t understand why Fenris was just standing there. He had always wanted a chance to rip his out heart didn't he. Why wasn’t he taking it?  Why was he just looking at him? Anders deserved to be killed.  
_

_“You don’t deserve it.” Fenris’ words brought Anders head up from the floor and he stumbled back from the Elf. He hadn’t realized he had spoken aloud._

_“I almost killed her,” Anders whispered._

_“But you didn’t. You stopped yourself. I made a promise to Hawke to watch the mages and I will do just that. I will watch and wait for the day either of you lose control; I will give you a clean and quick death. But I will not kill you while you still have control over your demon.”_

_Anders didn’t bother correcting him. He wasn’t sure that Justice was still the friendly spirit he once knew. He felt Justice stir at his thoughts but nothing more. They spoke for a while more even shared a meager meal of cheese and almost stale bread. He didn’t ask Fenris why he had come to reassure him and Fenris hadn’t explained but he was grateful for the company that night. Over the next few months they didn’t hang out again but there were less bickering and more discussing. Fenris even listened to him rant about mage rights without commenting. He could tell Fenris still didn't agree but didn't argue either. He had seen the looks of confusion on their friends faces but was grateful that no one asked about it. He wouldn’t have been able to explain even if they had._

Anders cleared his head of his memory. He had work to do. He entered into the next room down the hall from the dining room. This one had paintings littering the floor, a few broken vases, a couple of dead bodies. There were even some banners still hanging from the walls but nothing else. Not a single shelf or mantle so he continued on. The last room proved to be more fruitful. It had large ale casks and crates stacked against the walls but more importantly next to the door were two shelves. The top one held candles and mugs that were covered in cob webs. The second one however was clean and held a tiny crossbow and a deck of cards. He found Varric. Anders wasted no time in putting the puppet in place with a fleeting hope that there would be no more drinking.

Anders had forgotten to stabilize himself and with the foggy head left over from the hang over he lost his balance and went crashing down. A laugh behind him surprised him and he quickly if not gracefully removed himself from the floor. Behind him sat Varric in front of a small table with a chair opposite the dwarf. “How’s it going Blondie?” Anders just stared. None of the others were ever able to respond to him until he finished the test.

“You alright?” Varric asked after a few moments.

“Uh Ya but why can you talk?”

“Well my mother you see decided it would be better for me to use words instead of just grunting and pointing so at a young age..”

“Varric stop, that’s not what I meant. Look there probably isn’t much time so I will give you a quick version. We are in the fade, I lost Justice, some mage has us trapped, Isabella, Hawke, and Merrill are trapped upstairs, I haven’t found Fenris yet and I have to pass some test to get you out of here before either of us get hurt.” The words were rushed and Anders was out of breath by the time he was done speaking and Varric just smiled and said “I know.”

“What do you mean you know?!”

“I’m a dwarf, magic doesn’t affect us like it does every one else. I was actually surprised to be here at all. I’ve been awake this whole time wandering the house. Broody is in the wine cellar by the way.”

Anders was flabbergasted. “Why are you just sitting here then. Why aren’t you helping me?”

Varric laughed. “You couldn’t see or hear me so there wasn’t much I could do. I didn't know if I would get stuck in the room and the other three weren't able to see me so I stayed out. I could see this Puppeteer guy though so I kept him busy while you were wandering around and helping the others. You're welcome by the way."

“Well ok then. I assume that would be why I haven't seen him then. Lets go talk to the others first then find Fenris.” Anders made to leave but noticed the barrier on the doorway.

“Love to but now that you put my puppet there we are stuck here until you pass my test.” Varric motioned to the cards when Anders faced him again. “We are playing Wicked Grace.”

Anders groaned as he sat down which made Varric laugh all the more.

“Don’t worry about it Blondie. At least you won’t have to do this with a silent partner and I will take it easy on you.” The overly cheerful dwarf started to deal.

They figured out rather quickly that telling which cards you had resulted in being cut much like with Hawke's test. So Varric had to coach Anders through quips and odd remarks and even resorted to purposely botching his hands. Anders was a horrible player. An astonishingly horrible player. Nevertheless Anders ‘won’ and they both were allowed to leave. Even as Anders was delighted that they weren't set upon by shades or skeletons he was curious as to why it had gone as smoothly as it did. They reached the threshold and Varric disappeared into thin air. Anders checked the room then ran through the house shouting for the dwarf. When he reached the staircase he heard Hawke calling for him.

Anders rushed into the room to find Varric sitting at the table eating. Well at least he is safe but there went the plan on having Varric with him when he went for Fenris. “Glad to see you safe Varric. I wasn’t sure what happened when you disappeared. Any chance you are able to leave this room?”

Varric shook his head. “No good. It was the first thing I tried. The puppet man was probably mad that I let you win.”

Anders healed the shallow cut on his arm and checked out Varric while it was made sure that everyone was all on the same page as to what had happened.

“Since Varric found Fenris for me I will head there now. I still find it odd that I am here and Justice is not. All other times I was in the fade he took over. I can’t even feel him now.” Anders looked at his companions but not a single one of them would meet his eyes. His face pinched in confusion. “Why won’t any of you look at me all of a sudden? Do you know something about Justice?”

Isabela and Merrill suddenly found the threadbare blanket on the bed they were seated on to be fascinating. Varric took to staring at his plate. And Hawke was studying the wall as if the cracks held some sort of secret. After a moment of silence Hawke spoke up. “There is something we should probably tell you. The reason we are in the fade is not because of the Puppeteer. Well he is the reason we are still here but he didn’t bring us here in the first place.” Anders confusion didn’t let up and he didn’t respond so Hawke continued. “I told you that I had business on the wounded coast so you would come along with Fenris, Merrill, and I. Then I purposely took longer than expected so we would have an excuse to camp for the night. And.. and then we drugged your… t.. tea so you would pass….” Hawke stuttered to a stop when he chanced a look at Anders. Anders was furious and it showed.

“Oh no don’t stop on my account Hawke, please do continue, I would love to hear more.” Anders voice dripped hostility.

“Uhhh we needed you passed out so you wouldn’t see the rest of our friends join us. Merrill then sent you, me, Fenris, Isabella, and Varric into the fade while Aveline and Sebastian stood guard. We decided after that incident with Ella that Justice had to much of a hold on you and it was time for him to leave.” Hawke stopped once more and waited for Anders to say something. Anything.

Anders was crackling with energy and the others slowly back away from the extremely pissed off mage. Not that there was anywhere for them to go. Rawrsauce attempted to cower under one of the beds but only managed to get his head and front shoulders underneath. If Anders wasn't so mad he would have found it amusing.

"We were only trying to help." Merrill started to speak but stopped quickly once Anders glare was focus on her. Isabela pushed Merrill behind her but kept silent.

"And just where did you get such a ritual? If you used blood magic on me..." Anders didn't finish his sentence but then he didn't need to.

Merrill was muffled behind the pirate and her whispered words were hard to hear. "No no no, I would never not with out permission. The Warden said.."

"Warden?" The venom in the single word was almost palatable and Merrill was unable to continue. So Varric answered instead. "Solona Amell"

Anders head whipped around where Varric was standing next to Hawke. His hand twitching toward Bianca hoping it wouldn't come to that.

"You contacted The Warden Commander? You talked to her about me?" They didn't think it was possible but this seemed to infuriate Anders even more.

"We only wanted to help," Hawke took over the explanation once more. He was a big bad warrior. He wasn't scared of a pissed off Mage. Right? "We were worried about you."

“IT WAS NOT YOUR DECISION TO MAKE!” Anders bellowed; the air flickered with electricity. He shook with barely contained rage and with extreme effort Anders got his magic under control. It was a close thing. He had almost electrocuted them all. Minutes went by while Anders ground his teeth and tried slowing his breathing enough to continue this discussion without losing control. When he was able to he spoke low and clear, “I am going to find Fenris, we will stop this puppeteer guy and then I am finding Justice so he and I can leave this Maker forsaken place. Together. And once we are out I don’t want to see any of you again.” Anders pivoted and was almost gone when Hawke spoke once more. “He isn't Justice anymore; He isn’t your friend anymore.” Anders didn’t respond as he left the room and headed for the wine cellar. He had to get away from his _friends_. He felt betrayed. The only time he had felt more betrayed than he does now was the day they let the Templar join the wardens that eventually led to him joining with Justice. He tried not to dwell on it anymore as he headed to rescue Fenris. But he couldn’t stop the worry in his mind that the truce he and Fenris had found was all just a ruse. That the kindness shown to him by Fenris was just a trick. And that thought hurt him more than he wanted to acknowledge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting close to the end. I am happy with the direction this is going so I hope others are enjoying it too.


	5. Fenris

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Saving Fenris

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All new fight. I think Justice needed to be more Vengeance and not to help. I like this one better than what I wrote previously.

Anders was still smoldering with anger as he entered the wine cellar. It was turned toward himself now. He would be first to admit Justice was getting harder to control. He was still pissed at his so called friends. But he knew they were right. And if he wanted to be even more honest with himself he knew it was his fault , his anger that corrupted Justice and turned him into Vengeance. They could have shown him the ritual though. They could have told him the plan instead of tricking him. Instead of going behind his back and contacting the Wardens. Anders took a deep breath and steeled himself. He had a more immediate problem to worry about.

He needed to get Fenris out of here. Not that things have been going his way so far but hopefully once Fenris was free the others would be also. Then this Puppet Freak would be dealt with. And Justice, where ever he was stashed away, would have to be dealt with also. Anders recalled the plans he and Justice were working on and shuddered at the thought of what they were going to do. Without the spirit chattering in his head he was thinking a lot clearer. He could see what a horrible plan it was and with a promise to himself that he would finish what the others had started Anders finally took in his surroundings and got to work.

The wine cellar was dark, dingy, and cool. And not surprisingly filled with wine. There wouldn’t be much in the way of shelving down here so Anders checked for small tables instead. Toward the back was exactly what the mage was looking for. A end table sat against the wall covered in a clean cloth that looked expensive. It had a silvery pattern woven into the cloth and on top lay a collar. Anders was confused as to why a dog collar would be here. He didn’t have a puppet for Rawrsauce and… _Maker help me_! Anders couldn’t get the puppet from his pack fast enough and the moment it came loose he slammed onto the table and turned. He was moving before he even fully registered what he was seeing. Fenris was kneeling in the middle of the room. Head down, hands folded in his lap. “No no no no,” disbelief rang in Anders voice even as he saw the truth of the situation. Fenris was dressed in his spirit armor but the collar that was previously on the table was now very prominent on his slender neck.

“Fenris?! Can you hear me?” Anders didn’t dare touch even as he attempted to get the warriors attention.

“He can hear you.” The voice startled Anders and he quickly stood in front of Fenris. “He can even move. But he will not because I told him not to. He won’t disobey me. Will you Fenris?” The man speaking was wearing a cloak and had to hood to hide his face.

“No Master.” Fenris voice was devoid of any feeling and it hurt Anders to hear it. He never thought he would miss the snarling insults but it was better than this.

At Fenris’ words the cloak was removed and tossed to the floor. Danarius! It had to be. How did the bastard find them? Anders moved further in front of Fenris.

Danarius chuckled. “You are his new Master then? I would say he stepped down in the world but then I met your guest. Very interesting I must say.”

“Fenris is not a slave!” Anders’ anger was back but he had no problem letting it loose this time.

“Do I detect a note of jealousy? The lad is rather skilled isn’t he?”

“Fenris, get up and help." Anders spoke to the elf but knew better than to take his eyes off the Magister. 

“I want to offer you a deal, after all I'm not unreasonable.” Danarius continued as if Anders hadn't spoken.

"There is nothing you can offer me that I would want."

"So my pets freedom doesn't interest you?" Behind him Anders heard a intake of breath. Was Fenris upset at the thought of being free? Danarius was still talking and it took him a moment to register what the man had said.

"Go find your pet spirit and come with me. I will make you my Apprentice. And the elf will get to remain. When I return to Minrathous I will even take the steps to free him."

"That sounds lovely. There's just one problem. Well two really. I have this aversion to blood magic and slavery. Oh well then there is the fact that I would rather see you dead, so I guess that's three reasons isn't it?" Anders removed his staff from his back. He wasn't stupid to think that Danarius wouldn't leave without a fight. He really wished the others weren't trapped upstairs.

Danarius let out a quick breath of air and replied, "I figured you might say that. Fenris, kill him."

Shit! Anders jumped away from the lithe elf and threw a barrier about himself. He paid little head to the Magister focused almost solely on Fenris and not getting his heart ripped out. If he could get Fenris to snap out of it then they could fight together. Anders knew killing Danarius here would do little damage to him out of the fade but it would at least let them leave. Fenris charged, Anders barrier barely held and certainly wouldn't last against Fenris' assault.

Anders hastily cast petrify on Fenris. "Seriously Elf don't do this. Fight him damn you!" If Anders could just get him to listen. He could hear Danarius chuckling but spared him no more than a glance. Why wasn't he being set upon by shades and demons? Anders was thankful for small mercies.

The spell wore off the warrior and Anders barriered again. With a roar Fenris attacked once more. Damn it he was fast. Anders barrier shuddered out and Anders mind blasted him back. Dodging out of the warriors reach was hard and Anders had been clipped a few times. When ever he could Anders froze Fenris and attempted to reach him. "Damnable Elf I'm trying to help you." That earned him a growl. "This isn't you. You aren't a slave anymore." Anders pleaded and slammed Fenris back once again. His reprieve didn't last long as Fenris ghosted forward and slammed Anders against the wall. Elven hand entering into his chest. "Stop...please." Anders wasn't above begging. The pain was excruciating and his breathing became erratic. But Fenris had paused hand still buried in Anders chest but not crushing his heart either. "Please," Anders gasped. "Don't do this.. I...please."

"Finish him!" Danarius voice barely registered through the fog of pain but Mage and Warrior paid no head.

Fenris hand gripped a little tighter and Anders' screamed in near silence. "Fenris" The name came out barely a whisper and Fenris paused once again. Behind them Shades were being summoned there wasn't much time left. Anders leaned forward heedless of the fingers around his heart and pressed a caste kiss upon elvish lips. If he was going to die he was going have this small reward.

Fenris scrambled back away from Anders, roughly yanking his hand from the Apostates chest. There wasn't much time to consider the turn of events as he was set upon by shades. Danarius had wasted no time in providing himself with an escape once Fenris was no longer in his control.

"Anders get up." Fenris growled as he stood his ground in front of the fallen man. There would be time later to realize he used Anders name. Anders struggled to his feet and cast protective magic around Fenris. With Danarius gone, the coward, he could once again cast his heals.

Hawke came storming down the stairs followed closely by Isabela and Rawrsauce and they wasted no time in joining in. Thankfully the fight was short lived after that. Anders collapsed against a wall once more. "Where are Varric and Merrill." Damn he was tired.

"Varric faded and I sent Merrill out to..." Hawke abruptly changed the subject. "I take it you found the Puppet Dork?"

"Danarius!" The name like ash in Fenris' mouth. Fenris stood away from the others head drooping. Anders forced himself off the ground, he deserves a vacation after all this. He didn't speak until he was at Fenris' side. "Are you hurt?"

“I am fine Mage.” Fenris spoke to him but wouldn’t look him in the eyes.

“Fenris what's wrong?” Anders was starting to worry. He didn't see any physical wounds thank the Maker.

“I said I am fine.” The Elf stepped up away from Anders. “I would… thank you. For your assistance.”

“You don’t need to thank me Fenris.” He smiled shyly at the Elf. “I’m just glad you are ok.” 

Fenris didn’t know what to make of Anders kindess. He refused to think about the kiss earlier. He was disgusted with himself for letting his old Master control him once again. He was...

“It’s not your fault Fenris.” This brought Fenris to finally look at Anders. How did Anders know what he was thinking? “He had control over all the others too. Well not so much Varric but dwarfs are tricky like that.” Anders took a step closer to Fenris.

“I do not… wish to discuss it.” Anders face fell and Fenris felt the lose of his smile. “But perhaps another time?” That seemed to be the right thing to say as Anders' grin grew even bigger than before.

“Ya, uh sure. Anytime.” Anders words were breathy and both men blushed.

Hawke didn't want to interrupt, whatever this was but he knew they had one more problem to contend to. "Anders? We have to find Justice." As if his words were law the mansion shimmered out and they were left on the rocky planes of the Fade; the Black City floating ominously in the background. And there stood one thoroughly pissed off Spirit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It think its pretty obvious at this point I am taking my own liberties with time lines and such but hopefully I haven't messed it up to much. For clarity purposes I bumped up Anders needing help with his potion before they meet Hadriana which of course puts us before the fight which actually kills Danarius. The Chantry still gets destroyed as I feel it's important plot wise with Inquisition coming out soon. It won't be reflected in this story but I figured I put it here in case anyone was wondering.


	6. Justice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All things must end and this is it.

The four of them stood in stunned silence until at last Justice, Vengeance, spoke.

**“You took me into yourself to unleash vengeance against your oppressors, to stop mages being forced into slavery. They have deceived you. They are no better than the Wardens who let a Templar into their ranks to control you. Join with me again and justice will be swift. There is much work to be done.”**

“I’m not going to kill my friends Justice.” Anders wanted to say he couldn’t believe what just came out of Justices mouth but he couldn’t make himself believe that lie.

**“They tricked you. They wish to kill me.”**

“I know and I’m pissed about that. But they were doing it to help me. And I don’t want to join with you again.”

**“Why do you keep running from your duty? You would waste time sharing a bed with this elf? Anders, we have a mission that can’t be abandoned.”**

Anders blushed and glanced at the elf in question. Fenris wasn't watching him but he could see a red tint on the Elf's ears. They hadn't gotten even close to that but that didn't mean Anders hadn't thought about it sometimes, often, almost nightly... Anders cleared his throat and got back to the angry spirit wanting to kill him.

“I won’t abandon it. But I can’t be what you want me to be Justice. Can’t you see that we were headed down the wrong path? What we were planning on doing was wrong.” Anders was tired. He just wanted to go home sans spirit and sleep.

**“It is Just. But I can see you mean forget your end of our bargain. You got your vengeance but I got nothing. Now you wish to leave. I will not allow you to do this. I will not allow you to destroy all we have done. Fight me and then I will find another mortal to do the job you cannot.”**

Fenris twitched, ready to charge as Justice drew his sword. He wasn’t prepared to lose Anders just as they were starting to…well he didn’t know what this was between them but damned if he didn’t want to find out. He could see Hawke was also ready to fight and was thankful for another warrior between him and the mage.

Anders cast protective spells over the to warriors and edged farther back. “Dammit Justice we don’t have to fight.” But his words fell on deaf ears as Vengeance surged forward.

The fight was brutal. Anders was trying to save his mana for healing instead of offensive spells. He was still tired from the fight with Fenris and didn’t have much left. Hawke and Fenris so far managed to keep in front of Anders but he wasn’t sure how much longer his luck would hold. Anders kept trying to persuade Justice to stop this foolishness and just go home. He felt sorry for his friend. Had he known his anger would twist Justice into this he would rather have died.

“Don’t you want to go home? We don’t have to do this.” But Justice still wasn’t listening.

Isabela and Rawrsauce attacked Justice from the back whenever he went after one of the warriors, always quick to jump back when the spirit turned his attention to them but they were mostly ignored. Justice focused on making it past the warriors.

Hawke rushed at the Spirit Warrior. Justice dipped and weaved right as he was about to reach him and slashed downwards with his sword. Hawke parried with his shield and his blade clashed against the metal. The Spirit warrior was quick and sidestepped to the right just enough that Hawke’s blade passed a hairs breath from his face.

Quickly, before Justice could respond with a follow-up, Fenris sundered into Justice staggering him farther back from his mage. Fenris might not understand where this thing between him and Anders was going but Anders was his and there was no way he was going to let Justice have him.

Justice attacked with renew vigor forcing Fenris back a few paces. His anger, Anders anger was to great for him to stop this fight no matter how much Anders pleaded with him. He would see these mortals punished for their injustices. He would seem them dead to satisfy his vengeance.

Justice used his momentum, instead of piling into his opponent; instead, he jerked to the right and swung around Fenris. Then, when he was behind the elf, charged Anders. This would be done.

Anders was pulled off his feet violently and was thrown across the ground. He skidded and tumbled along the ground, uncontrolled. He was stopped by an outcropping of rocks. A groan escaped his lips as the pain from the attack started setting in.

“ARRRRRRRGH” Fenris let out a blood curdling scream and charged Justice once more. When near enough Fenris phased his whole arm into Justices’ back. Justice looked up and his eyes opened with pain. Justice was whimpering but had ceased his fighting.

“I have bested you demon,” Fenris voice dripped with disdain. “and you will bother Anders no more. Or I will kill you here and now.”

 **“No…our mission… AHHHHHHH.”** The Spirit screamed as Fenris slow sunk his other hand into the back of Justices head.

“The only reason I have not yet killed you is because Anders would be angry if I didn’t give you a chance to leave. I will not tell you again.”

**“You have won elf. Release me and I will leave. You have my word.”**

Slow Fenris released the Spirit. Hawke, Isabela and Rawrsauce were already in front of the downed healer. They didn’t trust Justice not to attack once he was free. Once released though Justice just stood watching Anders through the others. Until Anders spoke. “Go home Justice.” And finally the spirit turned and left without another word.

Once the spirit was gone Fenris dropped to Anders side. “Mage? Are you alright?”

“I’m fine but I would really like to wake up now.” His words were tight from the pain but a small smile still played on his lips. “Thanks for saving me Broody.”

“Anytime, Anders.”

Finally things turned black and the companions woke up. “Glad to see you all alive.” A familiar voice spoke to the right of Anders. “Nate? What are you doing here?” Anders painfully pulled himself off the floor along with the others. They had been laying side by side on the floor of a cave and were surround by dead bodies, shades, and skeletons. Anders doesn’t think those were there when they went to sleep in the first place. “And what the hell happened?”

Nathanial Howe chuckled, “What happened was we saved your ass. While you were off in la la land we were attacked. Some one really wanted to get a hold of one of you. And as to what I am doing here specifically. I was sent by the Warden Commander. After we got word that Hawke here didn’t want help with your little problem it was decided that we didn’t care. So here I am.”

“And we are grateful. With only myself and Sebastian we were soon to be overwhelmed. The extra help was appreciated.” Aveline was stoic as ever but you could hear the gratitude in her voice.

“Don’t think I am still not pissed at everyone. Because I am. I am just to tired to yell at you. That will have to wait til I can think straight. I want to go home now. I don’t know about the rest of you but I could use a drink, some food, and a bed, mostly a bed. I think I’m going to pass out now.” And Anders did just that. Fenris easily caught the exhausted mage in his arms and checked him over to be sure he was just asleep. He most certainly used this as an excuse to touch the man more than he already was.

“I agree with Anders but I think I can restrain myself until we find a better place to camp.” Agreement to Hawke's words sounded from all parties and Anders was carried in Fenris’ arms as everyone set off down the coast to a hopefully more secluded and safer spot.

There was a lot to discuss and Anders wasn’t going to forgive them easily. Fenris knew this wasn’t going to be easy. He hoped without Anders passenger Anders would still be interested in whatever they had started. He also knew this wasn’t the last he would see of his former master. But all that could wait until morning. For now he had his foolish mage and that was enough.


End file.
